Lutheran Women in Mexico Series: Señora Socorro

Welcome to the sixth installment of the series covering Lutheran Women in Mexico. Today we're going to talk about Señora Socorro.

Señora Socorro (pictured above, front row, far right) lives in Puebla, a city with a population of about 1.4 million. It's two hours from Mexico City. Puebla is home to three Lutheran congregations: Cristo Glorificado (Glorified Christ), Iglesia de Cristo (Christ Lutheran) and Solo Cristo Salva (Christ Alone Saves).

Señora Socorro first learned of the Lutheran church a little more than 10 years ago. A member of one of the congregations invited her family to come and hear God's Word. After studying for some time, Señora Socorro, her husband and their two sons became members of the church. They've been active ever since. "God has really blessed us," she says, looking back on the years she's been part of the Lutheran church.

Some of the activities she participates in involve visiting shut-ins and other members of the church. She helps organize events and keeps the church in good condition.

If you look a little deeper, however, you'll see that Señora Socorro plays a very important role in supporting pastors. About six years ago, her son Israel decided he wanted to become a pastor. He enrolled in the Mexican Lutheran Seminary, graduated, and now serves at the congregation La Santa Cruz (Holy Cross) in Monterrey.

Her nephew, Jorge Briones, also decided to enroll in the seminary. He has completed his studies at the seminary, and now will serve as a vicar during 2010. After that, he'll graduate and become a pastor.

Señora Socorro's husband, Sr. Gonzalo Rodriguez, has been a strong lay leader in Puebla for a long time. For two years, the couple went every Sunday to two missions in the Puebla area. They brought Bible studies and sermons to the people in those places, and encouraged them with God's Word. These two places have now become growing congregations.

Earlier this year there was a vacancy at one of the churches in Puebla. The congregation called Sr. Rodriguez to serve as their pastor, asking him to enroll in the seminary at the same time. He now serves as student pastor.

Whenever her husband heads out for church-related work, Senora Socorro almost always goes with him. "Being part of the Lutheran church has really helped me," notes Señora Socorro. "I get so many blessings from studying God's Word."

Thanks for playing such an important role, Señora Socorro, and we wish you and your family the best in the years to come. May God continue to use you to reach others with his precious Word.

*for the next two weeks we'll cover Christmas-related topics. This eight-part series on Lutheran women in Mexico will resume after the New Year.

**see previous articles from the series here.